Solid Rock Company, Inc.: OSHA inspections and violations

Incident on Oct 21, 2003: Employee injured when struck by granite slab

At approximately 11:30 a.m. on October 21, 2003, Employee #1 and a coworker were unloading slabs of granite from the company's flatbed truck onto metal A-frames in the storage yard on the west side of the building. The owner stated that he and Employee #1 had been working loading and unloading the slabs since approxima tely 9:00 a.m., and that it was Employee #1's first day on the job. The owner st ated that he was using a clamp-style lifting device and unloading two slabs at a time, each measuring approximately 124 ft by 64 ft, and weighing approximately 600 pounds each, using the knuckle boom crane on his truck. The owner stated tha t Employee #1 was standing between the A-frame, which he was loading, and anothe r A-frame, approximately 5 ft away, which contained previously loaded marble sla bs. The owner stated he went from his truck to look at the rack and ensure that the recently loaded granite slabs were stable and loaded properly. He then turne d and started walking back to the truck when he heard a crash and looked to see that the two recently loaded slabs had fallen against the other rack of marble s labs, pinning Employee #1 against those slabs and knocking him to the ground. Th e slabs apparently broke when they struck Employee #1 and the other stationary s labs. When they broke, the first slab cut Employee #1 along the right side of hi s head and face, severing his carotid artery. The owner immediately ran to Emplo yee #1 and pulled the broken pieces of the slab away from his body. Employee #1 was unconscious and bleeding profusely, and was hospitalized.